Shutter.



JOHN (JAHILL, OF NORFOLK, VIRGINIA.

SHUTTER.

Specification ofLetters Patent.

Application filed May 9, 1905. Serial No. 259,571.

To (1U whom it may (n/warn:

Be it known that I, Join: CAHILL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Norfolk, in the county of Norfolk and State of Virginia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Shutters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to shuttersor closures for windows, doors, and other openings,

I a front elevation of a portion of a building or other structure, showing the improved shutter and operating mechanism therefor applied thereto, the shutter appearing in open position. Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section through the parts as arranged as shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, showing the door closed. Fig. 4 is a front view of the winding-shaft and its supports, a

, portion of said shaft being broken away to expose the interior construction. Fig. 5 is a detail view, partly in section, of a portion of the door and one of the antifriction-rollers; and Fig. 6 is a detail view of one of the supporting-brackets for the shaft.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the numeral 1 designates the wall of a suitable structure, having therein a window or other opening 2 and a transverse beam or girder 3 at the top of said opening. Suitably secured to the wall at a distance from the opposite side terminals of the open ing 2are guides 4, open at their inner sides, as shown in Fig. 2. Arranged within the guides 4 are sliding brackets 5, preferably of U or yoke form, each of said brackets having arranged between the arms thereof an antifriction-roller 6, journaled on a trunnion-pin 7. The two trunnion-pins 7 project outwardly from opposite sides of a shutter or closure S at ornear the lower edge of the latter. This shutter 8 may be of any preferred construction andcomposed entirely of either metal or wood or a composite structure of both materials, as desired. The inner ends of the trunnion-pins 7 are held in sockets in.

the door by set-screws 9, while the outwardly-projecting ends thereof are journaled in the arms. of the brackets 5 and carry the antifriction-rollers 6, which are journaled to rotate thereon to permit the shutter or closure 8 to slide freely up and down in the guides 4 and to swing outwardly when the lower end thereof is elevated to the upper ends of said guides, as hereinafter described. Rollers 6 are of such diameter as to bear against'or contact with the inner and outer portions of the guides and revent jamming of the brackets therein. T 1e upper ends of Patented June 26, 1906.

the guides are offset or bent outwardly at an oblique angle, as indicated at 10, and are braced by spacing and deflecting wedges 11, arranged between the same and the beam or girder 3. These wedges, which may be made of wood or metal, prevent the ofiset or outwardly-bent upper ends 10 of the guides from being forced inwardly under strain when the door is opened. Independent wedge-shaped pieces may be interposed between the two ofiset guide ends 10, or a con-- tinuous wedge-shaped piece extending between the u per terminals of the guides at the to of t e door-opening and across the outer ace of the beam 3 may be employed.

Secured at their lower ends to the sliding brackets 5 are counterbalancing cords or cables 12, which are thus attached to the lower edge of the door. The upper ends of these cords or cables are fastened to windingdrums 13, mounted upon a hollow windingshaft 14, arranged above the door-opening. The shaft 14 is provided at one end with a trunnion 15 to turn within a cylindrical bearing 16 on a bracket-plate 17, suitably fixed to the Wall 1. The said trunnion 15 extends through the cylindrical bearing 16 to the outer side of the bracket and carries a sprocket-wheel 18, which may be operated by any known type of chain or sprocket elevating mechanism for raising the door. The other end of the shaft 14 is open and provided with a bearing-sleeve 19, through which pro jects a plug 20, to the inner end of which is fixed one end of a counterbalancin coilspring 21, disposed within the shaft, t e opposite end of said spring being secured in any suitable manner to the shaft. The plug 20 projects beyond the shaft and has a rectangular end 22, which fits within an open rectangular keeper-socket 23, carried by a bracket 24, fixed to the wall 1. By this construction it will be seen that the hollowshaft 14 is revolubly mounted and is adapted to turn in one direction against the resistance of and to wind up the spring 21 and to be turned in the opposite direction by the reaction of said spring. The shaft 14 is connected through thecords or cables 12 to the lower edge of the door by means of the windingdrums 13 attached thereto, the construction and arrangement being such that as the door in closing descends in the guideways 4 the shaft 14 will be revolved outwardly against the resistance of and to wind up the spring 21, which will thus oppose a resistance to the downward movement of the door to adapt it to descend freely and without shock or jar to closed position, the length of the spring being such as to counterbalance the wei ht of the door to regulate the easy descent 0 the door in an efficient manner, thus obviating the necessity of em loying restraining force through the sproc et-wheel 18 and associate raising and lowering mechanism to re ulate the closing movement. The winding-drums 13 are of conical form and provided with s iral grooves to receive the cords and adapt them to wind 1' ular-ly thereon, the upper ends of the cord ieing fixed to the drums at the point of greatest diameter of the latter and in such manner with said cords will wind upwardly and rearwardly thereon as the door is raised and the shaft 14 turned rearwardly under the action of the spring 21 and will unwind forwardly therefrom when the door is 'swun-g inward and permitted to slide downwardly in the guideways 4 to closed position. It will be understood, of course, that the tension of the spring 21 increases as the door dc;- scends in the guideways 4, this increase being compensated or in the present instance without the use of independent auxiliary means by making the winding-drums of conical form and securing the cords or cables thereto in the manner described, as on account of the unwinding of the cords, from the smaller to the successively larger convolutions of the spiral grooves of the drums the resistance to t eir unwinding movement will be gradually and appropriately increased, roducing, in eflect,.an increasing leverage o resistance to compensate for the increase in the tension of the spring to counterbalance the Weight of the door and ada t it to descend easily in the guideways 4. he number of winding springs and windingdrums and winding cords and cables em loyed oi course vary according to the Weig t of the door which is used.

When the shaft 14 is turned rearwar'dly, the cords or cables 12 will be wound up on the drum 13, thus elevatin the door in the guideways 4, the door eing gradually thrown outwardly from the wall or other support 1 as it ascends. When the rollerbrackets 5 reach the lower ends of the otlset or inclined portions 10 of the guidcways 4, the lower edge of the door is projected outwardly from the wall 1 into the oil'sot portions 10, thus guiding the lower edge of the door away from the wall and permitting the same to swing freely through its trunnionpins 7 on the sliding brackets 5 to allow the door to come to a horizontal position without binding or sticking in the guideways 4, thus insuring a free and easy movement of the door to its full-open position.

When the door is adjusted to its open position, it is necessary to employ means for supporting the same in such position and a dosideratum to provide means for preventing it from bending intermediate of its length and sagging at its outer end owing to the preponderance of weight of such end. To this end I provide a required number of guy or stay rods 25, each of which is pivotally attached at its inner end to an eyebolt 26, fixed in the wall 1, and pivotally attached at its outer end to a pivot-pin. mounted in the arms of a yoke-sha ed bracket 27, bolted or otherwise suitably astened to the dooror closure 8 at a suitable point outwardly beyond or above the center thereof. These rods are so arranged as to fold racticall' upwardl with the gate when the atter is c osed, as s own in Fig. 3, and to extend at an outward and downward an le from the wall 1 to their points of attac ment to the door or closure 8 to su port the latter when opened, as shown in 2,

in a horizontal position. Associated with each guy or stay rod 25 is a truss-rod 28, ex-' tending longitudinally thereirom to the outer edge oi the door, each rod 28 passing at its outer end through an opening in a suitable bracket or connection 29, fastened to the door near its outer or upper edge and provided be end the bracket with a securingnut 30. he inner end of the rod. 28 projects inwardly beyond the pivot-bracket- 27 and is connected with the outer end of the stay-rod by a crank or Wrist pin 31. The rods 28 are thus so mounted that when the door swings open to a horizontal position and the rods 25 straighten out under the downward move ment thereof the crank or wrist pins 31 will be thrown rearwardly and downwardly behind. the pivot-bracket 27, thus drawing upon the rods 28 and placing them under tension, whereby they are caused to straighten out the outer end of the door or closure 8 to a horizontal position, thus overcomin the tendency of the same to bend or sag downward under the preponderance of the weight thereof when the door is open. By this construction also the inner and outer portions of the door will approximately counterbalance each other, thus relieving the inner end of the door, which is supported by the windingspring through the winding connections, and the upper ends of the guides 4 from excess strain. lVhen the door swings inwardly and slides downwardly to closed position, the crank or wrist pins 31 will swing outward or forward until when the door reaches a fullyclosed position the connected ends of the rods 25 and 28 will lie above and wholly on one side of the pivot-brackets 27, thus removing the tensional pull upon the rods and outer or upper end of the door to prevent the same from being bent out of shape. The rods 28 slide freely in the openings in the brackets 29, and these openings are preferably flared to also permit the rod to tilt during its movement, thus ermitting it to readily assume the required positions during the opening and closing movements of the door without throwing strain upon the crank or wrist pins 81. It will thus be seen that the door will be effectually counterbalanced and rendered easy of operation and will also be properly stayed and braced when in 0 en position.

It will be observed that t e action of the offset portions 10 of the guideways in projecting the door outward from the wall 1 intensifies the longitudinal strain on the trussrods 28, thus increasing their efficiency. Another advantage attained by the use of the offset portions 10 is as follows: I have found by practical experience that it is inadvisable to make the guides 4 straight and vertical at their upper ends, for the reason that the guide-brackets 5 tend to hang therein when the door is open and to oppose an initial resistance tothe closing movement of the door, due to the pressure of said brackets against the inner walls of the guideways under the inward thrust of the truss-rods 28. By obliquely offsetting the upper ends of the guideways this objection is overcome, owin to the fact that as soon as the counterba ancing cords or cables 12 are unwound and the lower edge of the door sags in the offset portions 10 the inthrust action of the truss-rods 28 is transmitted at an inward and downward angle and as the rollers of the brackets 5 bear against the walls of the portions 10 such walls form inclined surfaces which tend to direct the rollers inward and downward, thus adapting the brackets to run freely down the guides as soon as the cords or ca les 12 begin to unwind. While the desirability of using guides provided with the offset portions 10 in connection with a door rovided with the truss-rods 28,. as herein s own, will be readily understood, I do not limit this feature of the invention to such use, as guides so constructed may be employed with advantage in connection with the door shown in my prior application before referred to or any other construction of door of the same type.

The improved shutter or closure when open will provide a shade or protecting means with respect to the opening which it is adapted to close and will serve as a shutter when used in connection with warehouses,

freight-houses, and the like, for the ends of wagons, which may be backed up in line with the opening for loading and unloading purposes.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new is- 1. In a door or like closure, a wall or like structure having a doorway, a door slidably and pivotally connected at one end at the sides of the doorway, elevating and supporting means carried by the wall and attached to the slidably and pivotally connected end of the door, and means connected to the wall and to the center and outer end of the door to support the-outer end of the door when in an open position, such means being adapted to exert a tension between the center connection and outer end of the door, to straighten and stiffen the said outer end of the door and hold it from sagging.

2. A shutter, means for pivotally mounting and guiding one end of the shutter, counteracting supportin means attached to said guided end, stay-r0 s for supporting the shut ter when in open position, and truss-rods connected to the outer end of the shutter and to the stay-rods in a manner to be placed under tension to prevent sagging of the outer end of the shutter, substantially as described.

3. A shutter, means for pivotally mounting and guiding one end of the shutter, counteracting supportin means attached to the guided end, stay-r0 s pivotally connected to the shuttprand adapted to support the same in open position, truss-rods connected at their Outer ends to the outer ends of the shutter, and crank connections between the outer ends of the stay-rods and the inner ends of the truss-rods whereby when the shutter swings to open position the truss-rods will be;- placed under tension to strai hten out the outer end of the shutter and ho d it from sagging, substantially as described.

4. A shutter, means for pivotally and slidably mounting one end of the shutter, elevating and supportin means attached to the gulded end, a stay 6 ement pivotally connected with the shutter at ornear the center thereof, and a truss member connected with said stay element and the outer edge of the shut ter and placed under tension when the shutter is opened to stay and prevent sagging of the outer and of the shutter.

5. In a door or like closure, 2. wall or like structure having a doprway, a door slidably and pivotally connected at one end at the sides of the doorway, elevating and supporting means carried by the wall and attached tothe slidably and pivotally connected end of the door, a stay pivotally connected to the wall and to the center of the door, and means connected to said stay and to the outer end of the door in such manner as to straighten out and stiffen the outer end of the door when the door moves to a fully-open position.

IIO

6. In a door or like closure, the combination of a door-frame, vertical guides at the sides-thereof, a shutter pivotally and slidably mounted at one end in said guides, counteracting supporting means attached to the guided end of the shutter, and a stay connecting the door-frame With'the outer end of the door for supporting the door when in an open position, the upper ends of the guides being inclined in a direction away from the doonframe and toward the outer end of the door when the latter is open to throw the guided end of the door outward from the door frarne as the door swings to a full-open position, substantially as described.

7. In a shutter or like closure, the combination of asupport, vertical guides secured thereto and provided with outwardly-inclined upper ends, a shutter pivotally and slidably mounted at one end in the guides, counteracting elevating means attached to the guided end of the shuttter, means for supporting the shutter in open position, and means coacting with said supporting means to place the outer end of the shutter under tension, thus straightening it out and preventing the same from sagging.

8. In a shutter or like closure, the combi nation of a support, guides attached thereto and provided with outwardly-inclined upper ends, a shutter or closure pivotally and slidably mounted at one end in said guides, counteracting-elevating means attached to the guided end of the shutter, a support for the shutter when in opened position, and a truss member connected to the outer end of the shutter and to said support in a manner to be placed under tension to prevent sagging of the outer end of the shutter, substantially as described.

9. A shutter, means for pivotally mounting and guiding one end of the shutter, counteracting supporting and elevating means attached to the guided end, means for supporting the outer end of the shutter, said means including a truss element automatically placed under tension when the shutter moves to open position to prevent sagging of the outer end of the shutter, and means operative upon the guided end of the shutter to project the latter outward and intensity the truss tension.

10. In a shutter or like closure, the combination of a support, vertical guides secured thereto, means for pivotally and slidably mounting the shutter at one end in said guides, counteracting elevating and support ing means attached to the guided end of the shutter, a stay-rod pivotally connected with the support and central portion of the shutter to support the latter in open position, and a truss-rod connected with the'outer end of the shutter and pivoted to the stay-rod in a manner to be placed under tension to prevent sagging of the outer end of the shutter, said stayrod being adapted to fold substantially parallel with the shutter when the latter is closed.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

H JOHN CAHILL.

Witnesses:

DAVID W. GOULD, JOHN L. FLETCHER. 

